Chilly Weather

Chilly air and rain have replaced sunshine over the last two days. Yesterday, Leo and I stayed in. I was reading and studying and doing some relaxing, and he was just hanging out, but this morning, weather notwithstanding, I could stay inside no longer. I put on my boots and jacket and headed for the Great Outdoors.

The forecast said that it was 7C (‘feels like 4C'), and that was ok until it started raining. Usually when I walk, I look for light — or for places that make interesting backgrounds for life to unfold against — for photographs. This morning all was pretty flat and grey. I took a circle route up to the market and bought some vegetables to add to the lentil stew I made yesterday.

In the market I chatted with the lady who sold me fruit and vegetables, and I took a random picture, then started to move on. Luckily I had already started to tuck my camera into my jacket when someone poked the canvas awning above my head and dumped about 5 litres of water on top of me.  “Maybe it was an accident? Co-incidence?” I hear you ask. I don’t believe so. The timing was too perfect — just as I was stepping there, a canvas roof sheds its load of rain? When I haven’t seen this happen at all at any other place in the last 20 minutes? I think it was the old guys selling znatchky and bric-a-brac behind me — they gave me funny looks the last time I was there.

I didn’t even break step, just walked on as if nothing had happened. I figured that any sort of response would give whoever did it what they were looking for. My hood was up, and the camera was covered, so there was no damage done except to my sense of well-being. I had been in such a good mood since talking to the veg lady…

Igor picked us up outside our apartment at 11 and we met Julia and Ilya as well as Tatyana and Inna at the art gallery. I hadn’t been to a gallery for years, so I really enjoyed walking around and looking at paintings. Having Ilya there reminded me of taking Alex and Sophia to the Palia Ilektriki in Nicosia when we were homeschooling. I tried asking him what paintings he liked, and how they made him feel, but my Russian is not really good enough.

Then we went to a coffee house with some very delectable cakes — salted caramel cheesecake — yum! Everything is 50% less than in Cyprus, so sweet treats like this are easily affordable. We chatted about all sorts of things: America (which I cannot give much information on!), travel, things to see, places to go. 

I am sorry that we only have two more days here, but Leo is not. He doesn’t like the cold and is desperate to get back to his computer…